BEIRUT: The Beirut-based car company W Motors has completed the first prototype of its $3.4 million “ultra-luxury hypercar” and is gearing up to officially launch sales at the Qatar Auto show on Jan. 29. The “LykanHypersport 2013” is the brainchild of Beirut-born car designer Ralph Debbas, who is the lead investor, chairman and chief […]
رحب الوزير السابق فريد هيكل الخازن، في حديث لـ"ال.بي.سي."، "بأي مواطن لبناني في كسروان اذا كانت تأتي في اطار السياحة انما نرفض شكل زيارة الشيخ احمد الاسير اليوم خصوصا ان كافة السيارات كانت من الزجاج الداكن ". واكد ان تحرك الاهالي كان عفوياً، معتبرا انه "يحق لنا الاعتصام على ارضنا سلمياً، خصوصا ان الاسير […]
Around 50 protesters from Kfardebian briefly blocked the main road of the mountain town on Thursday to protest a visit to a ski resort by controversial Salafist cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Asir. Kfardebian municipal chief Jean Aqiqi told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) that the road was blocked “out of fears of the consequences that Sheikh […]
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Palestinians who fled Syria’s war to neighboring Lebanon are living up to 20 in a room with no water, fresh air or electricity, the head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said on Tuesday. Donors needed to do more to help at least 20,000 Palestinians who have already come in and […]
President Michel Suleiman expressed on Monday his desire for current transformations in the region to “guarantee the reform, freedom and true democracy that people are looking for”. "There is no stability in the Middle East without social justice,” Suleiman stated after receiving an award by the International Foundation for Unity of Orthodox Christian Nations in […]
Russia is sending two planes to Lebanon to evacuate Russians from war-torn Syria, authorities said Monday, a move that appears to reflect Moscow’s increasing doubts about Syrian President Bashar Assad’s ability to stay in power. The announcement came as the opposition National Coalition failed for a second time to form a provisional government, while a […]
In his highly-anticipated second inaugural speech Monday, President Barack Obama signaled that he will take a more aggressive approach to achieving his liberal policy goals, opening up a new, more assertive chapter of his presidency as he begins his second term.
The address was by far the most liberal speech Obama has given as President, presenting a forceful case for the progressive priorities that he championed during the 2012 presidential campaign and plans to push through in his final four years in office.
The paragraph below sums up the gist of Obama’s message:
Tech giants Microsoft (MSFT, $27) and Google (GOOG, $705) are locked in a multi-front struggle whose outcome will have enormous implications for the shareholders of both companies as well as technology customers around the world. In many ways both companies find themselves at a vital crossroads: what to do when the cash cow upon which the organization is built comes under mortal threat? The answer that both have settled upon, leveraging areas of strength to force their way into adjacent markets, is both uninspired and fraught with risk.
The Roots of Strength
Microsoft
Microsoft was for a time the primary corporate beneficiary of the PC revolution. The insight of co-founder Bill Gates that maximum profit could be generated from sale of the software that ran computers, rather than from sale of the computers themselves, was a simple but profound idea that led to a gusher of profitability that continues to this day. Using its strength in operating systems, first with MS DOS and then with Windows, Microsoft successfully pushed its way into productivity software, leading to the Office suite of products, as well as more high-end enterprise tools such as the Exchange, SQL Server, Sharepoint and Great Plains products.
Today the company boosts imposing financial health. Revenue and cash flow came in at $73.7 billion and $31.6 billion for FY12. Additionally, management has demonstrated a focus on returning cash to shareholders, with $10.7 billion returned in FY12 through stock buybacks and dividends.
Google came of age at a fundamentally different time and in a different competitive landscape. Whereas Microsoft’s management intuited where profitability would concentrate in the PC ecosystem and positioned themselves to reap maximum gains, Google entered a crowded market (search) that few thought was in need of improving and revolutionized it with a superior product. Google has demonstrated considerable earning power, with LTM revenue of $47.5 billion and operating cash flow of $15.9 billion. Nonetheless, the company is considerably less diversified than Microsoft, with 77% of Q3 revenue coming from Google.com and Google’s network partners.
Different Paths
Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt’s daughter Sophie has posted a lengthy account with photos of their recent trip to North Korea. She describes deep government control of the nine-person delegation’s visit and North Korean citizens’ access to technology and information, as well as extreme cold and the mysterious availability of Doritos snack chips in one supermarket visited.
Some highlights:
– The English-language customs form for North Korea requires declaration of ”killing device” and “publishings of all kinds.”
– None of the buildings visited by the delegation was heated, despite the cold. Sophie writes: “They’re proudly showing you their latest technology or best library, and you can see your breath. A clue to how much is really in their control.”
– The delegation had two official minders always present with them (“2, so one can mind the other”) and no interaction with North Koreans not vetted by officials.
– Eric Schmidt’s “reaction to staying in a bugged luxury socialist guesthouse was to simply leave his door open.”
– The group saw a room with roughly 90 North Koreans at computers in the Kim Il Sung University e-Library. But, Sophie writes, “One problem: No one was actually doing anything. A few scrolled or clicked, but the rest just stared.”
– The group could make international calls on rented cell phones but had no data service.
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s President Michel Sleiman called Sunday for legalizing civil marriage in the country, arguing that such step would strengthen co-existence among citizens. “We should work on legalizing civil marriage contracts, this would be a step forward to abolish sectarianism and enhance co-existence,” said the president via Twitter. The topic was put in the […]
Population Movements to Keserwan - The Khazens and The Maans
ما جاء عن الثورة في المقاطعة الكسروانية
ثورة أهالي كسروان على المشايخ الخوازنة وأسبابها
Origins of the "Prince of Maronite" Title
Growing diversity: the Khazin sheiks and the clergy in the first decades of the 18th century
Historical Members:
Barbar Beik El Khazen [English]
Patriach Toubia Kaiss El Khazen(Biography & Life Part1 Part2) (Arabic)
Patriach Youssef Dargham El Khazen (Cont'd)
Cheikh Bishara Jafal El Khazen
Patriarch Youssef Raji El Khazen
The Martyrs Cheikh Philippe & Cheikh Farid El Khazen
Cheikh Nawfal El Khazen (Consul De France)
Cheikh Hossun El Khazen (Consul De France)
Cheikh Abou-Nawfal El Khazen (Consul De France)
Cheikh Francis Abee Nader & his son Yousef
Cheikh Abou-Kanso El Khazen (Consul De France)
Cheikh Abou Nader El Khazen
Cheikh Chafic El Khazen
Cheikh Keserwan El Khazen
Cheikh Serhal El Khazen [English]
Cheikh Rafiq El Khazen [English]
Cheikh Hanna El Khazen
Cheikha Arzi El Khazen
Marie El Khazen